Country music star Brad Paisley will not acquiesce to a new Nashville-area AI data center “without a fight.”
In an Instagram video published Monday, Paisley urged fans to sign a petition against proposed construction of a data center near the Nashville Zoo.
“Build ’em somewhere else,” he said.
With 24 No. 1 hits to his name, Paisley rates as country music royalty.
Thus, he used his fame to reach his 2 million followers on social media.
“By now you’ve probably heard about the proposed data center that they want to build next to the Nashville Zoo, which is an absolute nightmare scenario,” he said at the beginning of the video.
Then, he cited both practical and aesthetic objections.
“First of all, they don’t have the power to build this. They don’t have the water. It doesn’t belong there. It would be an enormous monstrosity, an absolute eyesore, and detract in every way from not only the zoo, but that area. It’s not too late to stop it either.”
Moreover, he said, the Nashville Zoo — which has created an online petition to oppose the project — deserves better.
“The zoo is one of the sources of joy in this city. It is one of the top zoos in the world. It’s family memories. It is expanding itself. It’s got all these plans to become even better as a resource for our city.”
Finally, he urged the people of Nashville to take action.
“So let’s sign the petition, if you agree, and everybody I’ve talked to does. Sign the petition. Let’s stop it. They don’t have to do this here. Build ’em somewhere else. But let’s keep Nashville as beautiful and as great of an attraction it’s always been.”
Paisley first reached No. 1 on the Billboard country charts with 1999’s “He Didn’t Have to Be.” Since then, he has struck gold with a slew of solo singles and duets, including 2017’s “Without a Fight,” featuring pop star Demi Lovato.
Recently, of course, AI data centers have triggered opposition from many Americans, famous or otherwise.
Last month, for instance, residents of Kenilworth, New Jersey, rallied against an AI center under construction there, according to WABC-TV in New York.
In Michigan, residents in the Grand Rapids area are mobilizing against an AI data center Microsoft Corp. is proposing, according to MLive Media Group.
And in Southern California last week, voters in the Los Angeles County city of Monterey Park approved a local measure permanently banning data centers, according to Fox News. The vote came in response to plans by an Australian investment firm to build a facility, Fox reported.
Indeed, as the weather has warmed this spring, the data-center controversy has heated up considerably. Many of those concerns have focused on the amount of energy the data centers consume.
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